This month marks the twentieth anniversary of National Poetry Month, established by the Academy of American Poets to raise awareness and appreciation for poetry, to celebrate and highlight the extraordinary legacy and cultural contribution of poets, and to encourage the reading of poetry beyond the classroom. Special Collections and Archives holds hundreds of books of poetry...
The Old China Hands Archives is pleased to announce the recent acquisition of new materials, including the Gloria Watson Curtis Kliene Collection, the Ellwood Lawson Collection, and the addition of new items to the Sylvia Maehrischel Collection. These collections strengthen the Old China Hands Archives mission to preserve...
In the United States, the 1968 East Los Angeles student walkouts began a rise of Chicano activism. A flash point was the Chicano Moratorium march on August 29, 1970 in East Los Angeles. On that day, the tragic deaths of four people included the celebrated Los Angeles Times journalist, Ruben Salazar. One organization to grow out of this turbulent period is Comisión Femenil Mexicana Nacional...
Africans forcibly transported to the Americas, removed from their homes, families, and cultures utilized various forms of passive and active resistance. These men, women, and children were forced to take new names and create new families, they were bred, bought, and sold, and active resistance was immediately and harshly punished. While physically forced into submission, slaves as a group were...
In late 1969, almost six months after the Stonewall Riots occurred in Greenwich Village, Manhattan, the Gay Activists Alliance was founded in New York City. The group included the Black Lesbian Caucus, which later renamed itself Salsa Soul Sisters, Third World Wimmin Inc., credited as the oldest Black lesbian organization in the United States and known today as African ...
Most of the earliest photographs were not printed on paper, but on sheets of metal or glass. These photographs capture extraordinary details, and give us a glimpse of life in the 19th century. In Special Collections and Archives there are many examples of photographic portraits that give an incredibly detailed view of fashion, personal adornment, and...
While food and drink are strictly prohibited in Special Collections and Archives, the department houses a number of items sure to interest amateur foodies and trained gourmets alike. The Culinary Pamphlet Collection includes recipe booklets, advertising literature, and cooking equipment brochures, most of which were published in the United States between 1871 and 1965. Together these materials provide a glimpse of how...
In Special Collections and Archives there are many books, images, and archival material that date prior to the 1900s, including some scrapbooks that have beautiful images and newspaper clippings telling important stories from the past. Scrapbooks are a fascinating way to view history, functioning as a lens through which we can now ...
Peggy Gilbert was a jazz saxophonist who, beginning in the 1930’s, formed several all-female bands, and through her work represented women in the world of jazz performance. Originally from Sioux City, Iowa, Gilbert was an active member of the Los Angeles Musicians Union, local 47, remaining a trustee after retiring from her performing career. She formed her most successful group, the Dixie Belles, at the age of 69. The Dixie Belles toured throughout the U.S from...
While October 20th, 1947, seemed like an ordinary Monday for many Washington Congressional staffers, for some the day began by throwing their feet on the floor with a feeling of dread in the pit of their stomachs. On this day, the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) held special hearings that were to last two to three weeks. The New York Times reported...
